Asahi Breweries (Japan)

Abstract Live sport spectatorship can promote social connection, yet scalable, low-burden strategies to strengthen bonding in real-world spectator settings remain limited. We here tested the hypothesis that co-consuming sparkling water during spectating attenuates hunger and fatigue and strengthens enjoyment and perceived unity, potentially via HR synchrony linked to oxytocin dynamics. In an individually randomized field experiment at a collegiate women’s basketball home game (sparkling water: n = 21; plain water: n = 19), spectators consumed 200 mL of sparkling water or plain water in synchrony before tip-off and before the end of halftime, with additional ad libitum intake of the assigned beverage permitted thereafter. We assessed acute freshness and hunger, repeated fatigue and enjoyment, interpersonal HR synchrony from the first half to 15-min post-game, perceived unity toward players and fellow spectators, and salivary oxytocin levels. Relative to plain water, sparkling water increased freshness and reduced hunger after intake, attenuated post-game fatigue, and enhanced enjoyment and perceived unity. HR synchrony was preserved in association with attenuated post-game fatigue after the game, and sustained synchrony was associated with higher perceived unity. Oxytocin decreased more in the sparkling-water group, and this decrease was associated with preserved HR synchrony as well as with changes in unity toward fellow fans. These findings support our hypothesis and suggest that co-consuming sparkling water serves as an alcohol-free, low-burden ritual to enhance social connection during and after live sport events. Highlights - Sparkling water increased freshness and reduced hunger after intake in spectators. - Sparkling water attenuated the post-game increase in subjective fatigue. - Sparkling water increased enjoyment and perceived unity. - Post-game HR synchrony was preserved in association with lower fatigue and higher unity. - Oxytocin decreased more with sparkling water and tracked HR synchrony and fan unity. - Co-consuming sparkling water is a low-burden, alcohol-free ritual for social connection.

Excess alcohol consumption leads to serious health risks and severe consequences for both individuals and their communities. To advocate for healthier drinking habits, we introduce a groundbreaking mobile smartwatch application approach to just-in-time interventions for intoxication warnings. In this work, we have created a dataset gathering TAC, accelerometer, gyroscope, and heart rate data from the participants during a period of three weeks. This is the first study to combine accelerometer, gyroscope, and heart rate smartwatch data collected over an extended monitoring period to classify intoxication levels. Previous research had used limited smartphone motion data and conventional machine learning (ML) algorithms to classify heavy drinking episodes; in this work, we use smartwatch data and perform a thorough evaluation of different state-of-the-art classifiers such as the Transformer, Bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory (bi-LSTM), Gated Recurrent Unit (GRU), One-Dimensional Convolutional Neural Networks (1D-CNN), and Hyperdimensional Computing (HDC). We have compared performance metrics for the algorithms and assessed their efficiency on resource-constrained environments like mobile hardware. The HDC model achieved the best balance between accuracy and efficiency, demonstrating its practicality for smartwatch-based applications.

The “Belgian White” style beer is generally brewed with hops, coriander seeds and orange peels as flavoring raw ingredients. Coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.) seeds contain several terpenoids, including linalool and geraniol. Coriander seed-derived geraniol can be converted to β-citronellol during fermentation, which can form the citrus aroma found in coriander beers by sensory synergy among linalool, geraniol, and β-citronellol. However, coriander beers also have other characteristic aromas which have not yet been fully investigated. Coriander seeds harvested from different countries, including Bulgaria, Canada, Morocco, and India, imparted different flavors to the finished beer. Here, we analyzed the flavor compounds in different coriander seeds using solid-phase microextraction-gas chromatography–mass spectrometry, and found that camphor, carvone, and (E)-anethole were unique to coriander seeds grown in Bulgaria. These compounds were also detected in beers brewed with Bulgarian coriander seeds. In addition, these compounds were revealed to enhance the flowery characteristics of beer by synergizing with excess linalool.

Abstract Remarkable advances in AI do not necessarily rely on modern molecular biology. Here, I highlight the importance of neural maturation in neural network information processing. In both supervised and reinforcement learning, immature synaptic transmission can achieve high fidelity learning but suffers catastrophic failure beyond specific thresholds. I identified genes involved in neuronal maturation and found that the candidate gene KCNH7 is upregulated during mouse brain development. Incorporating KCNH7 channel properties into a simulated neural model raised the excitation threshold and yielded a more linear response. These modifications enhanced the stability of memory recall and facilitated the comprehension of complex patterns, underscoring critical role of neural maturation in enabling advanced recognition capabilities.

Human gut health is closely related to sleep. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy of yeast mannan (YM) in improving bowel habits and sleep quality, along with metabolomics in fecal samples. A total of 40 healthy adults (age range, 22–64 years) with discomfort in defecation were enrolled and randomly allocated to receive either YM (n = 20; 1.1 g/day) or placebo (n = 20) for four weeks. Participants recorded their defecation habits throughout the test periods. Sleep electroencephalogram (EEG) recording using an EEG device and fecal sampling were performed pre- and post-treatment. The YM group significantly increased defecation frequency and stool volumes compared to the placebo group. After 4 weeks of treatment, the non-REM sleep stage 3 (N3) duration in the YM group was significantly higher than that in the placebo group. YM ingestion significantly lengthened total time in bed (TIB) and significantly shortened N3 latency compared to placebo intake during the trial. The metabolomics analysis found a total of 20 metabolite differences between the YM and placebo groups. As a result of stepwise linear regression, changes in fecal propionate and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) levels were identified as the primary factors explaining changes in TIB and N3 latency, respectively. Our findings suggest that the prebiotic YM could be beneficial to gut health and sleep quality.

Abstract Acetaldehyde, a chemical that can cause DNA damage and contribute to cancer, is prevalently present in our environment, e.g., in alcohol, tobacco, and food. Although aldehyde potentially promotes crosslinking reaction among biological substances including DNA, RNA, and proteins, it remains unclear what types of DNA damage are caused by acetaldehyde and how they are repaired. In this study, we examined acetaldehyde sensitivity of DNA damage-deficient cells established from human TK6 cell line. Among the mutants, mismatch repair mutants did not show a hypersensitivity to acetaldehyde, while cells deficient in base and nucleotide excision repair pathways increased its sensitivity. We found a delayed repair and hypersensitivity in homologous recombination (HR)-deficient cells but not in non-homologous end joining-deficient cells after acetaldehyde treatment. By analyzing the formation of acetaldehyde-induced RAD51 foci, which represent HR intermediates, HR-deficient cells, but not NHEJ, exhibits delayed repair of acetaldehyde-induced DNA damages, compared withwild-type. These results suggest that acetaldehyde causes complex DNA damages that requires various types of repair pathways. Interestingly, mutants deficient in TDP1 and TDP2, which are involved in the removal of protein adducts from DNA ends, exhibited hypersensitivity to acetaldehyde. the acetaldehyde sensitivity of theTDP1-/-/RAD54-/-double mutant was similar to that of each single mutant. This epistatic relationship between TDP1 and RAD54 suggests that that the removal of protein-DNA adducts generated by acetaldehyde needs to be removed for efficient repair by HR. Our study would help understand the molecular mechanism of genotoxic and mutagenic effects of acetaldehyde.

Hops are among the most important ingredients in beer that contribute to beer flavor. Consequently, novel types of hops have been bred and widely used worldwide. For example, the Sorachi Ace hop imparts characteristic varietal aromas, including woody, pine-like, citrus, dill-like, and lemongrass-like aromas, to the finished beer. In our previous study, the unique volatile compound geranic acid was significantly detected only in the test beer brewed with the Sorachi Ace hop; moreover, the coexistence of geranic acid and other hop-derived flavor compounds could result in the characteristic aroma of the Sorachi Ace beers. In this study, selected hop-derived flavor compounds, including geranic acid, were compared among 17 hop varieties. The geranic acid content in the Sorachi Ace hop was the highest among the studied hops. We also investigated the behavior of geranic acid and related flavor compounds throughout the fermentation process. The content of geranic acid was higher than those of the other compounds during fermentation. Next, we compared the concentrations of these compounds in kettle-, late-, and dry-hopped beers using Sorachi Ace hop. The results revealed that geranic acid remained at higher concentrations from the worts to finished beers despite the decrease in the content of other hop-derived flavor compounds as a result of evaporation and/or other factors during brewing. Further, geranic acid could remain at high levels in the test-brewed beers with Sorachi Ace hops because of its behavior as an acid throughout the brewing process, including during wort boiling and fermentation.

東京港醸造は，2016年に東京23区内唯一の清酒製造場として営業を開始した。製造場は，都心の狭い施設で少量多品種の清酒醸造を行うための様々な工夫がなされている。本稿では，コンパクトな酒造りを実現するためのポイントと，その中心となる超小型製麴機について解説していただいた。